It is precisely this difficulty distinguishing good from evil, and right from wrong, that confront the Duncan family in Godsend. Given only 72 hours in the midst of unspeakable grief to decide whether or not to clone their son, the Duncans can’t contemplate all the serpentine ramifications of their actions. They can’t possibly foresee the dangers and the damages their decision will cause. Most powerfully, they can never get past the notion that they are, essentially, saving their son.
A perverse case of fact eclipsing fiction occurred while Godsend was filming in November and December of 2002. News stories broke out – first about an Italian doctor who alleged he was about to clone a human being. This was followed almost immediately by the outrageous announcements of multiple baby cloning's by the bizarre Raelian cult. The media seized on the sensation and lurid headlines about human cloning screamed from the covers of daily papers while television reports, eccentric news conferences and much speculation became a staple of nightly newscasts and magazine shows. Against the backdrop of this media circus, Godsend continued filming.